Clipper Garland Has Broken Hand; He Might Be Sidelined Six Weeks

Clipper guard Winston Garland, a one-time starter and most recently a key reserve, will be sidelined for three to six weeks after X-rays taken Saturday showed what was originally thought to be a sprained left hand is actually broken.

No roster moves were made Saturday. One possibility is that Tom Garrick, sidelined because of inflammation of the right knee, will be activated when he is eligible to come off the injured list for Wednesday night’s game at Seattle. That would only leave the Clippers shorthanded Tuesday night against the Lakers at the Forum.

Garland suffered the injury during the fourth quarter of Friday’s loss to the Lakers at the Sports Arena. Doctors originally diagnosed it as a sprain, but when team physician Tony Daly took X-rays Saturday, a break was found in the third metacarpal, the long bone that runs from the middle finger to the wrist.

Garland, who along with Gary Grant is the only Clipper to play in all 44 games, started eight of nine during one stretch of late November and early December. The Clippers are 5-4 with him in the starting lineup, and before Ron Harper returned a week ago, he was the first guard off the bench.